Sanitize that cell phone when you upgrade

The holidays and the new year mean electronic upgrades for many lawyers. Experts warn there’s a risk in disposing of your old phones and tablets without proper safeguards.

Just yanking the SIM card is not enough, data security specialist Lee Reiber posts on Ride The Lightning. He said he recently examined a bunch of used cell phones and found a date of birth, a Social Security number, Yahoo and Facebook login information and email records.

Beyond the obvious (taking out the SIM card and erasing any SD card), Reiber recommends restoring factory settings and upgrading the OS to try to remove most personal data.